Friday, May 18, 2012

Crossing all the hurdles......

Shwetha M. (DOB :
27-01-1997)

Shwetha's
father works in a mutton shop. Her
mother works as a domestic help from dawn to dusk. Father is an illiterate and mother has
studied up to 4th standard.
They stay in a small tiny rented shed in Srirampura village, around 7
kms from Kaliyuva Mane. Shwetha's
parents have 5 children. Shwetha is the
middle one. Shwetha's mother takes major
share of the responsibility of the family.
Father has not found time to visit Kaliyuva Mane even once where his
daughter stays since five years.

Shwetha
was going to the main stream rural Kannada medium school. She was going to the school once in a blue
moon due to multiple reasons such as inherent disinterest, rote teaching
methods, lack of guidance at home, fear of punishment at schools etc. She eventually dropped out. After dropping out 10 year old Shwetha
started accompanying her mother. While
her mother used to work, daughter used to play at the mother's work place.

Shwetha's
mother Bhagya used to come to Kaliyuva Mane in exingent situations. While her mother used to be busy in washing
vessels, this little girl used to enjoy swing at Kaliyuva mane. One day Bhagya had come to
Kaliyuva mane with her five children. Elders used to help her mother, while others
used to play. We asked the eldest child
to join the school. But Shwetha was
keener. So she became a part of Kaliyuva
Mane family on 17-04-2007.

She
started learning from scratch at Kaliyuva mane.
i.e from Kannada alphabets and numbers.
She was happy and progressing during first 3 years. But gradually her interest declined. During the summer vacation of 2011, Shwetha
did not return to Kaliyuva mane. Instead
she went to Bangalore and was working in someone's home taking care of a one
year young infant. That experience was
an eye opener for her! She came back to
Kaliyuva Mane with a firm
determination. She started cooperating
with the staff members. Now she has
passed X standard public examination in English medium. She is the first girl to have passed X
standard in the whole family. She has
one younger brother and one younger sister who have dropped out from the
school. A few days ago, her younger
sister Megha joined Kaliyuva mane as a resident scholar.

Shwetha
wants to stay at Kaliyuva Mane and learn dance, arts and tailoring.

Manu Kumar K. (DOB : 27th
November 1993)

Manu
hails from Mellahalli located on Bannur road.
Both the parents are illiterates.
Manu is the second son. Farming
is the family profession. Manu completed
1st standard from a rural main stream Kannada medium school. He lost interest in the studies and dropped
out from the school due to multiple reasons such as inherent disinterest, rote
teaching methods, lack of guidance at home, fear of punishment at schools etc.

Manu
started helping his parents in farming and taking care of the cows. In the meantime, Manu's uncle Shivalingu, an
illiterate had learnt reading and writing attending literacy classes conducted
by Divyadeepa at Mellahali way back in 1996.
His uncle having understood the importance of education brought Manu's
parents to Kaliyuva Mane. On 9th
April 2007, Manu became a part of Kaliyuva mane family. He knew only to write his name in Kannada,
but started cooperating with the staff.
With his fine attitude and hard work he could complete X standard public
examination in English medium. His
younger brother 14 year Mahesha is continuing his education at Kaliyuva Mane having
dropped out of school for more than 4 years.

Renuka Swamy S.M. : ( DOB : 31st
January, 1996)

Renuka
Swamy lost his father when he was quite young.
His mother brought him up. His mother
works in a small eatery in a village on the outskirts of Davanagere. Her
dream was to give her only son good education.
She had studied up to 9th standard and knew the worth of
education. So with great difficulty, she made him join a private Kannada medium
school.

But
Renuka did not show much interest in studies.
He failed in 6th standard and stopped going to school. Through word of mouth, Renuka’s mother came
to know about Kaliyuva Mane. So Renuka
joined Kaliyuva Mane on 15-04-2008 as a resident scholar. We found him bright but not suitable for
structured studies. Even at Kaliyuva
Mane, he was not interested in studies initially. But he gradually started evincing interest in
studies. Renuka has passed X standard exams in English medium.

Rajeshwari M. (DOB : 16th
April 1996)

Rajeshwari’s
parents stay at Ashokapuram in a rented house. Her father works as a
painter. Her mother is a housewife. Father has passed SSLC and mother has
passed 5th standard. So they
are aware of the importance of education.
They have 4 daughters. Rajeshwari
is the youngest. Rajeshwari was
regularly attending main stream Kannada medium school.

Rajeshwari’s
eldest sister Jaishri stays at Kenchalagudu.
Divyadeepa has trained her and presently she is working in
Divyadeepa. Jaishri was worried about
her sister’s poor academic performance.
So Jaishri brought her sister to Kaliyuva Mane. She had passed 6th standard in the
main stream school. At Kaliyuva Mane she
was subjected to a simple assessment test.
The result was shocking. She
could not write a few lines properly in her mother tongue.

She
joined Kaliyuva Mane as a day scholar on 31st May 2007. In 2009, she joined as a resident scholar. We
found her studious and hard working. She
has passed X standard public exams in English medium in first class.

Dhanush P. (27th
December 1996)

Dhanush’s
father Mr. Puttaswamy was working in a private firm at Kollegal. But unfortunately the firm closed down. So he did not get wages for several months. Divydeepa’s
wellwisher introduced Puttaswamy to Divyadeepa in 2003. For several years, Dhanush’s father used to
work at Divyadeepa taking care of the dairy farm and the land. Kaliyuva Mane was started in June 2005. Naturally his daughter joined Kaliyuva
Mane. Dhanush who had completed 4th
standard in a Kannada medium main stream school, joined Kaliyuva Mane in 2006
as a resident scholar.

Dhanush’s
parents are educated. Lady luck smiled
on Puttaswamy’s family. Puttaswamy’s
wife got a Anganwadi teacher’s job in Kenchalagudu itself. Mr.
Puttaswamy got a job as a cook in a
hostel. Presently they are staying in a rented house in Kenchalagudu.

Dhanush
is a bright boy. Now he has passed X
standard in English medium, securing first class.

Shivaraj (DOB : 20th
August 1996)

Shivaraj’s
parents stay at Dhanagahalli in a small house.
Shivaraj’s father works in an
industry. Mother is a housewife. Father has studied up to 9th
standard.

Shivaraj
was studying in a Kannada medium main stream school. His parents were not happy with the boy’s
scholastic performance. Through word of mouth, Shivaraj’s father came to know
about Kaliyuva Mane. So they brought the boy to Kaliyuva Mane. On 04-06-2007, he joined the school as a day
scholar. In 2009, he joined as a resident scholar.

About Us

"Kaliyuva Mane" is a free alternative school being run by Divyadeepa Trust with a mission to transform opportunity-deprived rural children into self-reliant citizens by providing them LOVE, CARE, EMPATHY & EDUCATION.

The school derives its inspiration from the ideals of Swami Vivekananda and Sri Aurobindo's views on integral education.